Jesus, and love unto all the saints :' so Col. i. 4 ; Philemon 5. Now, if we love all, we cannot hut pray for all ; to say we love one, and not pray for him, is a solecism. Can a courtier love his friend, and not speak to his prince for him, when he maj' do him a favour hy it ? Love prompts a man to do that wherein he may express the greatest kindness to his friend. Mary poured the most precious ointment she had upon Christ. Prayer is the most precious ointment thou canst hestow on the saints ; save it not for some few of them that are of thy private society, or particular accpiaintance, but let the sweet odour of it fill the whole house of the church : pray for all. Secondly, We are to pray for all saints, because Christ prays for all ; he carries all their names on his breastplate ; 'Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word :' he leaves not one of the number out ; the elder brother was priest to the whole family, so is Christ, our elder Brother, to the whole . household of believers. Now Christ's intercession is a pattern for our prayers. We cannot, indeed, pray for all, as he doth: he prays for them not only collec- tively, but every individual saint by name : ' I have pi-ayed' (Peter) ' for thee ;' yea, not only for every person by name, but for their particular wants and occasions : ' I have prayed that thy faith fail not.' Christ takes notice of that very grace which was in most imminent danger, and secures it by his inter- cession. O what unspeakable comfort is this to a saint, that he in particular should be spoken of in heaven, and every want of temptation he laboureth under be taken notice of, and provided for by Christ's mediation ! Thus, indeed, we cannot ]n-ay for all, because we know but few of their persons, and little of the state of those we know ; neither is thereneed we should. Our general sufFi-age is as kindly taken as if we could descend to particulars. God knows the mind of the Spirit in our prayers on earth to be for the same things which Christ insisteth on in his intercession in heaven. Thirdly, We must pray for all saints, or we can pray for none. 1 . He that prays for one saint, and desires not good to another, prays not for that one as a saint, but under some other consideration, as wife, friend," child, &c. 2. We cannot pray acceptably for one, except we pray for all ; and so we wrong those for whom we pray by leaving them out for whom we also should. Joseph would not hear the patriarchs concerning Simeon's release till they brought Benjamin over to him also : if thou wouldst be welcome to God in praying for any, carryall thy brethren to him in thy devotions. ' Are here all thy children?' said Samuel to Jesse. He would not sit down till the stripling David was fetched to complete the company. May be thou art earnest in prayer for thy near neighbouring Christians, but forget others that are farther off. Thou rememberest the church of God at home, but dost thou lay the miseries of the churches abroad to heart.' What if God should ask thee, ' Are here all thy brethren ?' Have not I children, and you brethren elsewhere in the world to be thought upon? The Jews in Babylon were not to forget Jerusalem because of the distance : ' Remember the Lord afar off, and let Jerusalem come into your mind,' Jer. li. .50.
CHAPTER XXIL
THE APPLICATION OF THE POINT.
First, What a rich merchant is the saint, who hath a stock going in so many hands! In heaven Christ is hard at prayer for him; on earth, his bretlu-en ; what can he want? Christ hath such interest in his Father's heart, that he can deny him nothing ; the saints such interest in Cln-ist's that he will not deny them ; so the Christian's trade goes smoothly on in both worlds. Think of this. Christian, for thy comfort, — wherever a child of God is living upon earth, there hast tlum a factor to tratiic with heaven for thy good : let this help thy faith in puttingup thy own private prayers, knowing that thou prayest in a communion and fellowship with others : even when thou art alone in thy closet, expect an answer to more than thine own prayer. It is uncharitablcness not to pray for others, and pride not to expect a benefit from the prayers of others. Secondly, It teacheth us how inquisitive we should be concerning the affairs of our bre- thren, and state of the church, that so we may pray for them, with a greater sense of their wants. Nehemiah, when he heard of some that were come out
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786 AND SUPPLICATION FOR ALL SAINTS.